Swimming with the Fishes

Merfolk was the first Modern deck I ever built, and as such it will always have a special place in my heart. Until Humans busted onto the scene, it was one of the few competitive Modern tribal decks, and dedicated Merfolk players have honed their Islandwalking strategies like sharpened knives. As a lover of aggressive decks and synergy, seeing Merfolk make their way back into Magic has me ready to start diving into the deep end of deck construction for both Standard and Modern.

Standard

While it didn’t seem like there were enough Merfolk to make a splash in Standard with the release of Ixalan last fall, Rivals of Ixalan brings with it a whole new school of fish. I believe there are two routes a deck builder can take when building Standard Merfolk: an all-in aggressive strategy or a grindier midrange deck.

Rivals of Ixalan gives us Mist-Cloaked Herald – which, in conjunction with Kumena’s Speaker, gives us eight one-drops to curve out with. With Metallic Mimic, River Sneak and now Merfolk Mistbinder in the two-drop slot, our ability to present a fast clock will punish any deck that finds itself with a slower start. Blossoming Defense and Dive Down could provide protection for our threats, if the meta warrants their inclusion, and I believe Spell Pierce can finally find a home in this tempo-oriented deck, countering the early interaction that our opponent will be relying on to be able to turn the corner later in the game.

Modern

“Tropical Fish” has been on every Modern Merfolk player’s mind since Kumena’s Speaker was printed in Ixalan (and, for some, since Collected Company was first printed). The addition of Merfolk Mistbinder now gives the deck up to sixteen (sixteen!) lords to pump their team. I would start with something akin to this:

Tropical Fish also has some flexibility with its choice of one-drops. The deck’s split of Cursecatchers and Kumena’s Speakers could shift, depending on the metagame that you’re facing. If you need win the game in a hurry, Kumena’s Speaker’s bigger body is paramount; if you need to protect your team from more reactive decks, you’ll want more Cursecatchers in the main.

Collected Company is another card that can potentially slot into Merfolk decks now that the manabase can better support it, but it would need to replace either Aether Vial or Spreading Seas. Personally, I prefer Aether Vial, as it allows you to apply the maximum amount of pressure, but if your meta is particularly sweeper-heavy, Collected Company becomes the more valuable late-game top-deck. Alternately, Spreading Seas’ ability to punish mana-greedy decks while enabling Islandwalk makes it one of the most powerful cards in the deck, and I would rarely look to cut it from the maindeck.

I feel like I’ve only skimmed the surface of the Merfolk pool with these three decks. With so many new Merfolk coming in Rivals of Ixalan, there are strategies that I still haven’t explored, and I, for one, am ready to dive in!

A Spike at heart, Chantelle spends her free time prepping for tournaments, working toward the ever-elusive Mythic Championship, and championing other competitive ladies. She’s a combo aficionado and seasoned aggro deck player, and Standard and Modern are her preferred formats. Growing and improving as a player, both technically and in her mental game, are of the utmost importance to her.